A Roman Wife. Here’s coals for bread.
The Egyptian [A man in armour has flung his arm about her neck]. Eat, drink and pass again To the lost sunshine and the passionate nights, And tell the world our story!
Shakespeare. Let me go!
All the Shadows. Never, never, never! To the end of time we follow, Follow, follow, follow!
Shakespeare. Threads and floating wisps Of being, how they fasten like a cloud Of gnats upon me, not to be shaken off Unsatisfied—
The Shadows. Sing! Sing!
There is a strain of music: the crowd hides Shakespeare: the three masked players have drifted free of the turmoil.
Child [delighted]. He does it quite as well as Orpheus.
Anne. Who are these dreams?
Child. The people of the plays. And there are the Fates at last! That’s the end of my part. Now you must talk to them till your husband comes. He comes when you scream.